


Cross-Species Culinary Adventure

by Flynne



Series: Garviel Shepard [12]
Category: Mass Effect Trilogy
Genre: Akil you are not helping, Garv the Taco Evangelist, Gen, idiot cinnamon roll bros
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-05
Updated: 2018-08-05
Packaged: 2019-06-22 11:19:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,467
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15580803
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Flynne/pseuds/Flynne
Summary: “I didn’t realize tacos were a turian dish.”“They aren’t, but Shepard wanted me to try making them. He’s convinced I’m missing out on life If I don’t.”





	Cross-Species Culinary Adventure

Akil opened the door of the apartment and smiled to himself as he was greeted by the familiar smell of cooking meat and onions. His nose wrinkled slightly, though, as he stepped inside. The smell seemed off somehow, and there was an unfamiliar tang to the spices wafting through the air. He headed to the kitchen to peer curiously around the corner.

Garv stood at the counter, chopping vegetables and surrounded by taco-making supplies, which wasn’t unusual - but what made Akil raise his eyebrows was the sight of Garrus standing in front of the stove, stirring a pan with a wooden spoon. “What are you up to?”

Garv looked up, greeting him with a grin. “Making tacos.”

“There’s a surprise,” Akil teased. He put his hands in the pocket of his hooded sweatshirt and moved to stand next to the island in the center of the kitchen, eyeing the array of foods both familiar and unfamiliar that were laid out on the counter. “ _Both_ of you are making tacos?”

“Yep!”

“I didn’t realize tacos were a turian dish.”

“They aren’t,” Garrus said over his shoulder. “But Shepard wanted me to try making them. He’s convinced I’m missing out on life If I don’t.”

Akil smirked. “That sounds like him.” He picked up an oval, blue-green vegetable - or possibly fruit, it was hard to tell - and examined it curiously. “How do you know what to use?”

“Educated guesses,” Garv replied. He moved over to the stove, bumping his shoulder against Garrus’ to scoot his friend over a step or two as he peered into the other steaming skillet on the cooktop. Satisfied that the onions had cooked enough, he opened a container of ground beef and added it to the pan. “We tried to figure out what palavanian vegetables would be the equivalent of lettuce and tomato, but it’s a lot harder to figure out than you’d think it’d be. Hey, keep an eye on the meat for me, okay?” he said, interrupting himself to address Garrus. “Just stir it enough to keep it from burning.”

Akil set down the blue-green oval and picked up something covered in crimson-edged scales that reminded him of a spherical pine cone. “Tomatoes are actually a fruit,” he said matter-of-factly.

Garv gave him a flat look and plucked the scaly vegetable out of his hand. “How would  _you_ explain a tomato to someone who’s never eaten one?” he asked.

Akil thought for a moment. “Fair point,” he conceded.

“Yeah, I know. So we just went and bought a bunch of vegetables and decided we’d figure it out as we went along.” Garv held out the vegetable where Garrus could see it. “Keep the scales? Or peel it?”

“Peel it. But you can’t peel it until it’s cooked, so just leave it for now and I’ll deal with it later.”

Garv shrugged a little and put it back on the counter, picking up the oblong blue-green item Akil had been investigating earlier. He cut it into slices, squinting critically at the soft center before consuming a whole slice in one bite.

“Ah…Garviel…” Akil watched him with amusement bordering on concern. “What are you doing?”

“Finding a turian tomato.” Garv made a thoughtful face as he chewed. “Huh. This one might work.”

“Exactly how much dextro food have you eaten?” Akil asked dubiously.

“Oh, none. We’ve got a spit bucket.” As he spoke, Garv picked up a container sitting in the midst of the food that Akil hadn’t noticed before, and spit his chewed mouthful of food into it before putting it back on the counter.

Akil stared at his brother in disbelief. “You have a…? …And you’re putting it in the middle of your food prep area.” He gave the container a scandalized look before bending his head to pinch the bridge of his nose. _“Garviel…”_

“It’s a good idea,” Garv said defensively. “Here. Tell me if this’ll pass for a tomato.” He nudged a slice of the vegetable across the counter toward Akil before picking up a piece of tomato and holding it out to Garrus. “Hey, tell me if this tastes like the blue one.”

Garrus set down his spoon and took the tomato, taking an experimental bite.

Akil eyed the blue-green circle on the counter in front of him. “You do realize turians and humans taste food differently, right?”

Garv gave him a narrow-eyed look. Anyone else would interpret his casual question as just that: a curious inquiry. His brother knew him better. The look on his face said  _Keep it up, bro, and you’re headed for a noogie._  Akil didn’t acknowledge it, giving his best look of wide-eyed innocence in return.

“If you want to help,” Garv said, pointing at the slice of alien vegetable again, ”chew on that and tell me what you think.”

Behind him, Garrus reached for the spit bucket. “Are all tomatoes this…slimy?”

“That’s not slime, it’s seeds.”

“Seeds in jelly,” Akil put in. “It’s a little slimy.” He blinked as Garv flicked a piece of cheese at him. He watched the orange cube bounce off his chest to land on the counter, then picked it up and popped it in his mouth.

Garv paused halfway through peeling an avocado, setting his knife down and taking a step back. “Maybe we’re going about this the wrong way,” he said, putting his hands on his hips. “I don’t know if finding similar-tasting food is the way to go. Garrus, why don’t you just finish cooking the meat, then put vegetables on it when it’s done?”

“Raw?”

“Why? Is that a problem?”

“Well, most vegetables have to be cooked.” He paused, glancing at the sliced blue-green object on the cutting board. “Did you eat that one raw?”

“I didn’t  _eat_ it. I chewed it up to taste it.” Garv’s face took on a guarded expression. “Why? Is  _that_ a problem?”

“…Probably not,” Garrus replied after a moment. “Just don’t put it in your mouth again.”

“Garvi’s sense of self-preservation goes out the window when it comes to tacos,” Akil said with a sigh. He crossed over to the edge of the kitchen and hopped up on the counter, returning Garv’s glare with another blank, innocent look.

“I don’t  _have_ to make you dinner, you know,” Garv said, resuming his avocado chopping with a little more force than necessary.

“I know, and it’s very sweet of you to do,” Akil said airily. He tucked his hands into his pockets again, swinging his legs back and forth to gently tap his heels against the cabinets. “Garrus, he really hasn’t tried to make you cook tacos before now? In all the time you’ve known him?”

“We haven’t exactly had a lot of down time,” Garrus replied. He picked up a bowl of chopped vegetation and added it to his pan of meat. A sharp but not unpleasant smell arose from the cooking vegetable as he stirred.

Garv drained the excess liquid from his beef and onions before adding a couple generous tablespoons of seasoning to the pan. The container with the bright red powder didn’t have a label on it, but Akil knew from long experience that Garv had bought several different types of spices and combined them in his own pre-mixed blend so he wouldn’t have to measure everything out in the middle of cooking. A hint of a smile softened his habitually placid face. Garv didn't cook many things, but when it came to tacos, he didn’t mess around.

“I guess what you’re making would be more of a fajita than a taco,” Garv said, looking at Garrus’ food thoughtfully. “Still good, though.”

“What’s a fajita?”

“It’s kind of like a taco.”

Garrus thought about that for a minute. “If they’re both meat and vegetables wrapped in bread, what’s the difference?”

“Uh…” Garv paused in his movements, blinking a few times as he thought.

“Fajitas are usually strips of meat with cooked vegetables like onions or peppers,” Akil put in. “Tacos usually have ground or shredded meat and have cold vegetables like lettuce or tomato. And cheese.”

“See? That’s why I keep him around,” Garv said. He flashed Akil a quick grin before turning back to his cooking. Akil found himself grinning back, even though Garv wasn’t paying attention. It was good to see him like this, happy and relaxed despite the still-visible bruises from his fall through the floor of the sushi restaurant. It had been too long since his brother had had time to just be  _himself_ , and Akil sent a silent thank-you to David Anderson for giving Garv the space where he could do it. It was a bittersweet feeling, because he knew it was just a temporary reprieve, but he was content to soak it in as long as it would last. 


End file.
